South Korean prosecutors on Friday raided the Korea Coast Guard headquarters and some regional offices as part of its ongoing probe into the 2014 Sewol ferry sinking, one of the country's worst maritime disasters, which killed more than 300 people.

A special unit tasked with the probe launched the raid at around 10 a.m. at the Incheon-based Korea Coast Guard headquarters, as well as at regional offices in the southwestern coastal cities of Mokpo and Yeosu.

The raid is part of a widening probe into the Sewol disaster by the special unit that kicked off earlier this month. The state prosecution launched the team that is tasked with determining the exact cause of the fatal incident and probing any mishandling of the rescue operations by the former conservative administration.

More than five years have passed since the tragedy, but many people still believe the truth behind it and the government's search-and-rescue operations and other responses at that time have yet to be found.

In late October, the Special Commission on Social Disaster Investigation, an independent inquiry panel, criticized the government's delayed response in rescuing victims.

The panel told a press conference it has obtained evidence showing a belated mobilization of helicopters, accusing the Coast Guard of failing to save a teenage victim, who could have survived if he had been immediately transported to a hospital. (Yonhap)